CHAPTER 190: PATRIARCH TU

Balu walked in front, carrying a large bulging bag, accompanied by Bi and two other Ox-Head tribesmen.

Kiet, an Ox-Head man with curved horns, immediately wagged his tail upon seeing Eric by the window. He accelerated forward, his voice booming with excitement:

"Little Patriarch of the Snow Wolf tribe, you’ve finally arrived!"

He was so agitated that his large round eyes popped out like two headlights, almost saying the classic line: "I missed you to death!"

Imagining that scene, Eric couldn’t help but laugh out loud. The window of the Ox-Head tribe was large, matching their physique, so he pushed the window open and jumped straight down.

Kiet happened to run underneath just then; seeing this, he hurriedly reached out, intending to catch Eric.

Right at that moment, a familiar gray shadow flashed past like the wind. Max suddenly appeared from nowhere; with just a few running steps, he launched himself up, his powerful long legs pushing lightly against the wooden wall, easily catching the "little beast cub" hovering in mid-air.

Max gently set the kid who didn’t know how to take care of himself on the ground, his face showing a hint of displeasure:

"Don’t be so naughty."

Being grabbed by the scruff of the neck by fate in the most ruthless way possible, Eric screamed internally. The naughty one was clearly Max!

Even though the Ox-Head tribe’s wooden house was tall, the window was only about two or three meters from the ground. He was a cub of the Snow Wolf tribe, after all; jumping down was nothing!

But in the end, he still gave a resentful response just to let it pass. Sigh, who asked for the original owner’s fragile and weak image to be so ingrained in everyone’s mind? Actually, he had gained quite a bit of weight lately, but no one would believe it if he said so.

Kiet missed the catch and had to retract his hands.

The ox tail behind him kept wagging, and the soft tuft of fur at the tip swayed along with it. Clearly, the Snow Wolf people didn’t have feline genes, but for some reason, Eric kept staring at that tail, his claws suddenly feeling inexplicably itchy.

Strange, I’m a wolf, not a cat, right? Or maybe... Wolf people also have this habit?

Kiet was unaware that Eric was focused on studying his tail. He rubbed his hands together; his face, which looked somewhat fierce, clearly showed a look of longing. Whether he was longing for Eric or the food he made, no one knew.

"You’ve finally arrived! I told my friends that you could turn soybeans into delicious tofu and even make more of it. The result was that none of them believed me. It wasn’t until Bi and Balu said the same thing that they finally believed I wasn’t lying."

Before Eric could open his mouth, Kiet unleashed a non-stop torrent of words.

Indeed, the food he made still had more appeal.

Eric was speechless.

"It just so happens that I’ve already soaked the beans," he said happily. "Soak them for one night, wait for the beans to expand, and we can make tofu right away. This time I’ll make a lot, so you can take some back for your friends to taste."

"Wonderful!" Kiet cheered. "I brought several types of beans from Bi over here. Mung beans and red beans make very delicious sweet soup; I don’t know if they can make tofu? It’s just that their yield is too low, so I couldn’t bring much. You taste them; if you like them, my house has some too, I’ll give you a few more sacks!"

Hearing mung beans mentioned, Eric spread his hands, feeling a bit regretful:

"What a pity, mung beans, red beans, and even black beans cannot make tofu, but they can be processed into other dishes. Making them into bean sprouts is also very delicious; wait until next time we come here, I’ll bring some for you to taste."

These types of beans weren’t actually impossible to use, it was just that the finished product wasn’t as good as with soybeans. The two of them exchanged ideas about dishes for a while, everyone showing interest, especially Kiet. He was extremely looking forward to the bean sprouts Eric mentioned, wishing he could see them appear right before his eyes.

At this moment, the others walked over. Thomas, seeing Bi arrive from the wooden house next door, also came out and stood beside Eric.

"Little Patriarch, there are a lot of vegetables in here, all freshly taken from the cellar, very fresh!" Balu said as he placed the bundle of goods inside the house.

Bi stepped forward, grinning happily:

"Finally waited for you to arrive. Let me introduce you, this is the patriarch of our Red Grass tribe, Tu. After you left, I spoke to the patriarch about the tofu dish and the fact that you wanted to learn farming. So, as soon as we heard the news that you arrived, we immediately ran over here."

Standing beside him was a tall, muscular Ox-Head man. This patriarch had dark blue skin and a gold ring pierced through his nose, looking extremely fierce at first glance.

However, in complete contrast to his appearance, the eyes he used to look at Eric were incredibly gentle and steady, carrying the warmth of an elder.

Eric smiled typically:

"Greetings, Patriarch Tu. I am Eric, the patriarch of the Snow Wolf tribe."

Thomas and Joseph had met Patriarch Tu before, though they hadn’t interacted much, so they nodded in greeting.

"You are the Little Patriarch Eric that Bi and everyone keep mentioning."

Tu’s voice was completely different from his ferocious appearance; it was deep, warm, and gentle, making people involuntarily drop their guard:

"Knowing how to make tofu at such a young age, and even wanting to lead your tribesmen in farming, truly a talented child."

Eric felt a bit shy. He was originally an adult and had experienced all sorts of information explosions on the internet, so knowing a little more wasn’t strange. Now that these things were considered his own credit, Eric felt ashamed in his heart and involuntarily scratched his head out of habit.

"Because the Ox-Head tribe lives very well. The children in your tribe don’t have to suffer hunger through the winter, so I thought farming might help us Snow Wolf people live a little better."

Tu, Bi, and the others looked at Eric with eyes full of admiration, nodding repeatedly.

"You’re right," Tu smiled kindly. "We rely on farming to feed all the Ox-Head people on the Illusion Dream Continent. This also makes us very proud. We don’t need a territory that is too large, yet we can still meet the needs of our tribesmen. Since our ancestors started farming, the number of children in the Ox-Head tribe has also been increasing day by day."

Reproduction was always a major issue for beastmen. So Tu’s words made Thomas and the other Snow Wolf people look on with deep admiration.

It must be known that the Snow Wolf tribe had nearly a hundred people, but only about ten children. Any beastman coming to the Red Grass tribe and seeing the active Ox-Head children running on the roads—who wouldn’t be envious?

It was cold outside, so everyone went inside the wooden house. There weren’t enough chairs for so many people, and the Snow Wolf people were too lazy to carry more in, so they sat in a circle on the floor around Eric’s group.

"Bi has already told me about the content of the trade."

Tu proactively brought up the business first:

"The pottery fired by you Snow Wolf people is of much better quality than that of humans, and it’s very beautiful; my wife likes it very much. The white wine has a strong, rich flavor. The price you offered, frankly speaking, puts you at a disadvantage. We will use food to make up for that part."

Seeing Eric about to refuse, he continued immediately, his voice full of sincerity:

"If it’s because you want to learn how to farm from us, then there’s even less need to compromise on price. The tofu recipe and the stone grinder blueprints you provided are already valuable enough."